GUEST: I'm a garage sale-type person.

So there was an ad in The Washington Post.

A guy advertised a walnut pie safe, rare.

That's all he said in the ad.

And I get up early anyhow, so I was there about 6 ’clock on a-- on a Saturday morning.

APPRAISER: Mm-hmm.

GUEST: Uh, he-- APPRAISER: Thi-this was for his garage sale?

GUEST 1: This was his garage sale.

And it was in-- actually in his basement, so£ APPRAISER: Uh-huh, so he had other things for sale as well.

GUEST: Yeah.

So I went down with my wife and we looked at it.

I looked at the, you know, the eagles and I thought, this is-- looks to be a pretty good pie safe.

APPRAISER: Mm-hmm.

GUEST: So I asked him about it.

I said, "how long have you had it?"

And he said, "50 years."

APPRAISER: Well, I would certainly agree with the gentleman who advertised it, uh, some years back that it was rare.

And the thing that separates this pie safe from all of the other pie safes that you see... GUEST: Mm-hmm.

APPRAISER: ...are these incredible panels in it of eagle decoration.

GUEST: Uh-huh.

APPRAISER: You can see that the panels are pierced... GUEST: Mm-hmm.

APPRAISER: ...and that really did let air flow in and out of this box.

GUEST: Mm-hmm.

APPRAISER: The thing that's-- as well that's rare about this pie safe, uh, is that the panels... open up on the sides, so you really get both sides open.

GUEST: Uh-huh.

APPRAISER: And the front doors fly open as well.

And you get great cross-ventilation, so that you can clean this out.

GUEST: Mm-hmm.

GUEST: Uh-huh, they could really get into it.

APPRAISER: And there are little hinges, wooden hinges, that hold, uh, the panels in-in place.

GUEST: Mm-hmm.

APPRAISER: Uh, the thing that concerned me a little bit... GUEST: Yeah.

APPRAISER: ...when I first took a look at this pie safe is the fact that all of these panels have been replaced... GUEST: Mm-hmm.

APPRAISER: ...uh, in terms of the wood, uh, supports in-inside.

GUEST: Uh-huh.

APPRAISER: And that might trigger-- were these panels made at a later date?

GUEST: Mm-hmm.

APPRAISER: I disagree.

I think that they... GUEST: Mm-hmm.

APPRAISER: That this piece is, is homogeneous, and it is-- it is all in good condition.

GUEST: Mm-hmm.

APPRAISER: What may have happened is that-- I see, uh, some gnawing down here at the bottom.

GUEST: Something got into it and chewed on it.

APPRAISER: Probably a little mouse or rat or some sort was gnawing at some point.

GUEST: Uh-huh APPRAISER: Maybe these panels were floating and not really secure.

GUEST: Uh-huh.

APPRAISER: The wood is indeed walnut.

GUEST: Mm-hmm.

APPRAISER: And I'd also place it, in terms of a region, uh, in, in Pennsylvania.

GUEST: Mm-hmm.

That's what he thought.

APPRAISER: We see a lot of great country furniture coming out of Pennsylvania.

GUEST: Uh-huh.

Mm-hmm.

APPRAISER: Uh, it has a nice French foot on it.

GUEST: Uh-huh.

A French foot?

(chuckle) APPRAISER: It's a French foot, uh, which you see in a lot of, uh, Federal furniture.

GUEST: Uh-huh.

APPRAISER: So I would date this, uh, probably from about 1810, to say, 1820.

GUEST: Okay.

APPRAISER: Uh, which is... GUEST: Oh It's older than I thought then, yeah.

APPRAISER: Mm-hmm.

Yeah.

It's, it's-- I think it's, it's quite early.

Uh, it-it's nice, uh, uh, dovetail construction on the piece... GUEST: Mm-hmm.

APPRAISER: ...um, and-and really a marvelous, uh, piece.

Um, in terms of value, I think he paid $100, you said, in the '50s?

GUEST: Yes.

APPRAISER: I think today... GUEST: '40, 1940.

APPRAISER: In 1940.

I think we're, we're looking at close to a $7,500 pie... pie safe.

GUEST: Oh my gosh.

Yeah GUEST:(laughing): Oh, fine.

That's wonderful.

Thank you very much.

APPRAISER: Good, good.